Wednesday, September 29, 2010

The Crash Course seeks to provide you with a baseline understanding of the economy so that you can better appreciate the risks that we all face. The Intro below is separated from the rest of the sections because you'll only need to see it once...it tells you about how theCrash Course came to be.

How long will it take?

Chapters are between 3 and 20 minutes in length. All 20 sections take 3 hours and 23 minutes to watch in full.

If you are interested in a quick summary of the Crash Course, watch our 45-Minute Crash Course presentation by clicking here.

Help your kids make healthy choices with these simple guidelines.By Blythe Copeland

Every parent wishes they had kids who always chose pineapple over popsicles, broccoli over cookies, and yogurt over pudding -- but for most kids, those healthy choices don't come naturally. Still, no matter how young your children are, you can put them on the right track to a lifetime of healthy food choices with these seven strategies that help them learn what real food is, where it comes from, and why it tastes better than anything from a box with a cartoon character on it.

1. Get them into the Garden

Kids are notorious for declining foods they don't recognize, but getting them to help you in the garden means they can not only identify everything from basil and broccoli to eggplants and zucchini, but also watch it grow from the seeds they picked out of your gardening catalog. Encourage them to help you grow herbs in a windowsill garden, plant a backyard garden behind their sandbox, or keep a few tomato plants thriving on the porch if you don't have much space. Even better, work with your child's school to add gardening to the curriculum: A recent report from the National Foundation for Educational Research found that kids who help in a garden have better science skills, read better, and have a better understanding of food production.

2. Spend a Day on the Farm

Once your little ones have the hang of growing their own small plants, show them how the pros do it with trips to nearby farms. Pick apples and pumpkins in the fall, harvest berries in the summer, and stop by the dairy for a look at where milk, ice cream, and cheese come from. They'll learn to connect the food at the supermarket with the people and animals that produce it, and you'll be able to stock up on the best produce, meat, and dairy in your neighborhood.

3. Teach them to Cook

Photo credit: Karen Moskowitz/Getty Images

Once you have the raw ingredients, show your kids how they turn into breakfast, lunch, and dinner with age-appropriate cooking lessons. Kids who aren't old enough to dice, chop, and peel can still stir, pour, and crack eggs (as long as you don't mind a little extra clean-up -- but they can help with that, too). Even how-tos on easy, kid-friendly foods, like pancakes and grilled cheese, will get your little ones into the habit of knowing exactly what they're eating -- and give them the tools to make healthy choices as they start navigating cafeteria lines, birthday parties, and restaurants. This is also a great opportunity to talk to them about how processed food is different from what you're making from scratch -- that those fast-food chicken nuggets aren't the same meat as your breaded chicken breast tenders, for example.

4. Encourage them to Eat their Veggies

Maybe you're dealing with a picky eater who won't eat anything but macaroni and cheese with a side of broccoli -- that's normal. But exposing your kids to a wide variety of food gives them more options once they grow out of mac-and-cheese, so keep offering it, even if they keep rejecting it; often, picky eaters will need to see a food 10 to 15 times before they eat it. The temptation to let them eat Cheerios every night so that the rest of your family can have a quiet dinner is strong, but if you can get them try every vegetable at the farmers market (raw and cooked), you are almost guaranteed to find something that they like -- and someday salad bars, vegetarian entrees, and leafy green sides will be a natural alternative to fries.

5. Be a Role Model

Photo credit: Ross Whitaker/Getty Images

You're the most important food model in your child's life -- so if you're making healthy choices, they will too. Maybe this means revamping your whole family's diet, trading dessert pops for fresh fruit and after-school cookies for carrots with dip -- or maybe it just means ordering the vegetable of the day instead of the garlic mashed potatoes at your favorite restaurant. But either way, making healthy meals a priority for yourself and your kids means you're all more likely to choose nutrition over convenience and instill good decision-making habits in your junior food-lovers.

6. Teach them to Read Labels

While your kids don't necessarily need to scan every nutrition facts label for calories and grams of sugar, it's never too early to teach them what to look for when it comes to ingredients on their foods: Does applesauce need sugar? Does pasta sauce need high fructose corn syrup? How many grains are really in that whole wheat bread? GIve them the tools to thick critically about the cereal and cookies and candy they want you to pick up at the grocery store -- and then show them how making treats from scratch can be just as delicious (and more natural) then the packaged ones they see ads for during Saturday morning cartoons.

7. Let them Help you Shop

Photo credit: Marcy Maloy/Getty Images

Shopping with a crowd might take longer, but kids who pick out foods they're excited about are that much more likely to eat them when they show up on the dinner menu. Take them to the farmers market with you and help them pick out fruits and vegetables in a variety of shapes and textures, or make a game out of finding something delicious in every color that they know. School-age kids can choose the fruits and vegetables they want in their lunch box each day -- while you can be sure they are getting the nutrients and health benefits their growing bodies need.

Traditional approaches to community regeneration which define communities in solely geographic terms have severe limitations. They often failed to deliver on key social capital improvements such as improving trust between residents or fostering a greater sense of belonging.

In this report we argue for a new approach to community regeneration, based on an understanding of the importance of social networks, such an approach has the potential to bring about significant improvements in efforts to combat isolation and to support the development of resilient and empowered communities.

Key points

Traditional approaches to community regeneration which define communities in solely geographic terms have severe limitations.

These traditional approaches have failed to deliver on key social capital improvements such as improving trust between residents or fostering a greater sense of belonging.

We argue for a new approach to community regeneration, based on an understanding of the importance of social networks.

This approach utilises the powerful diagnostic power of social network analysis; an approach which helps respondents as well as public sector workers to understand communities as a complex series of relationships.

Such an approach has the potential to bring about significant improvements in efforts to combat isolation and to support the development of resilient and empowered communities.

Efforts to build the ‘Big Society’ , such as training for community organisers or initiatives aimed at increasing the membership of community groups, should draw heavily on social network analysis. If they fail to do so they risk replicating existing inequalities within communities.

While we believe social networks offer a powerful tool that may well enable communities to solve problems and shape circumstances more effectively, no social network can provide a substitute for capital investment, or form the rationale for significantly withdrawing support and funding from areas where entrenched disadvantage is acute.

The research

The Connected Communities project at the RSA has produced a report based on the first year of its work. This report is based on an analysis of academic literature on social networks, specifically the striking importance of social networks in determining our behaviour and wellbeing. It is also based on an extensive research project undertaken in New Cross Gate in southeast London, and in Knowle West, Bristol.

We undertook door-to-door surveys in New Cross Gate to understand local social networks, together with in-depth interviews of key hubs in the network. We constructed a network map of some 1,400 nodes (local people and institutions) as an indicative blueprint for how the community works. In Knowle West, we interviewed local key connectors and influencers and surveyed users of the Knowle West Media Centre.

This policy brief, published by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), explores the role of groundwater storage in providing communities with wider access to water in the face of climate change.

The use of groundwater for domestic water and irrigation has already lifted millions of small farmers out of poverty. But, for many regions, including the world's biggest groundwater user, India, supplies are dwindling because of overextraction, pollution and growing competition for use from cities or hydropower.

Climate change will add to the pressure because the more variable rainfall predicted will inevitably further stimulate groundwater use but could change the natural rate of aquifer recharge.

A coherent strategy for recharging aquifers is essential to ensure groundwater supplies in a changing climate. There are several technical options for managing groundwater recharge, say the authors. These include direct surface methods, where water from reservoirs or canals seeps into aquifers, or where irrigation water is left to infiltrate into shallow aquifers. Subsurface methods include digging flooding pits or 'injecting' water into aquifers through deep boreholes.

The best results will often be obtained through a managed mix of seepage, infiltration and injection methods, say the authors. But achieving this will require policymakers and water managers to move towards co-managing surface water and groundwater, rather than treating the two as separate domains.

Co-management strategies could help, for example, in Central Asia, where competition between users has led to political conflicts, and where large-scale surface irrigation has resulted in waterlogging, soil salinisation and other environmental problems. Water supplies here could become more sustainable if farmers switch from using surface water to groundwater for their summer irrigation needs, and use the winter runoff to recharge aquifers before the next growing season.

With climate change, access to water will be increasingly vital for irrigation. Groundwater storage could provide the answer. Investments in relatively inexpensive engineering could enhance and stabilise groundwater aquifers to provide storage capacity that is both accessible to large numbers of small farmers when and where they need it, and is more resilient to dry spells.

This policy brief, published by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), examines the relationship between climate change, water and food security and outlines potential adaptation strategies and policy priorities for developing countries.

Agriculture in developing countries is already under pressure from growing populations, industrialisation and environmental degradation. Climate change is expected to exacerbate and add to these problems. For example, estimates predict that for each degree Celsius rise in average temperature, dryland farm profits in Africa will drop by nearly ten per cent.

Changes in rainfall variability and increased evaporation will directly impact rainfed agriculture and reduce water availability for irrigation and hydropower.

Strategies to reduce rural poverty in the face of climate change will largely depend on improving water management in agriculture.

A first step must be to increase our understanding of water use and rural livelihoods in poor countries, says the author, ODI research fellow Eva Ludi.

She outlines a number of strategies that could then be implemented to adapt agricultural production and water to climate change. These include switching to more drought-tolerant crops or livestock breeds, modifying irrigation techniques, adopting practices such as zero-tillage to conserve soil moisture, changing crop calendars or grazing times, and implementing seasonal climate forecasting.

Policy attention is also needed in several key areas, says Ludi.

First, developing countries must develop long-term water policies structured around country-specific legal, institutional, economic, social, physical and environmental conditions. These must integrate the different sectors that depend on water — from agriculture, livestock and fisheries to manufacturing, industry and municipal water use.

Institutional and governance reforms will be needed to balance demand and supply across these sectors. And enhanced stakeholder participation will be necessary to secure uptake of adaptation strategies.

Policymakers will also need to develop their skills and those of end-users to understand the new challenges posed by climate change.

They must also promote efficient irrigation and drainage systems to increase water productivity, while also making better use of groundwater storage to enhance water availability.

The current recession has caused worldwide soul-searching about whether conventional capitalism is the right economic model for the 21st century. Cyclical and rapacious recessions and a dangerous depletion of natural resources, along with growing gaps between the haves and have-nots, increasingly threaten all countries. The remarkable growth in the non-profit and philanthropic sector across the world, even through the recession, is in part an effort to create alternative strategies and institutions to help communities failed by so many of the 20th century capital models. The West rarely looks to Africa for social innovation. However, some of the most promising models are coming from Africa’s emerging third sector.

While African poverty has grown over the past few decades, African wealth has as well. And a handful of wealthy Africans are beginning to take leadership roles in addressing their country’s social problems and transforming the destructive economic and political systems that cause them.

Often hidden in plain view of a mainstream media blindsided by Africa’s undeniable challenges is an indigenous philanthropy and social innovation movement that is creating new models that, if promoted and encouraged, could create more sustainable development strategies and a compelling alternative to conventional capitalism that the world could emulate. The global press does a good job of highlighting the formidable political, economic, social and environmental challenges facing African countries. Indeed, conventional capitalism models that focused on extraction of wealth and natural resources without replenishing them have caused underdevelopment in Africa since the slave trade and colonial eras.

Despite its bad rap in the international press, Nigeria − along with Kenya, Ghana and South Africa − is one of the most promising social innovators in sub-Saharan Africa. Building on centuries-old giving practices, it is beginning to blend its traditional approaches with western techniques to create wholly new philanthropic and social investment models that could establish the new models of capitalism the country needs for sustainable development.

Businessman and statesman TY Danjuma has created Nigeria’s first indigenous foundation, using his personal wealth, and has hired a dynamic executive director, Thelma Ekiyor, who has international philanthropy experience. Using a social change giving strategy, TY Danjuma Foundation funds education, health and economic development. But it also recognizes the importance of promoting Nigeria’s philanthropy movement and creating a new business ethics through exemplary governance practices. The foundation also aims to support Nigeria’s traditional giving circles and promotes regulatory reforms that would encourage other wealthy Nigerians to give.

With pending, albeit controversial national legislation, Nigeria may be the world’s first country to require CSR. In addition, Nigeria has a growing number of social entrepreneurs who, especially with additional support, can create best business practices to resolve the country’s challenges.
But Nigeria still has a long way to go to build its emerging third sector into a tool to reform capitalism. Any effort to instil social principles into the profit motive of capitalist institutions − whether they are companies, foundations, NGOs, governments or social enterprises − is fraught with tension. Social capitalism is not a panacea for the breakdown of societies and markets. And Nigerian social capitalism is subject to the same pitfalls of social investment and philanthropy as anywhere else.
Ten principles to advance Nigeria’s social capitalism

The third sectors of western countries certainly have their challenges and need reform to advance more equitable capitalist practices. Nigeria and other African countries, since they are newer to the sector, can learn from the West’s mistakes. But Africa also has much to teach. Here are ten tips that might help Nigeria and other African countries improve global social capitalism through its third sector.

Build on Nigeria’s homegrown wisdom and institutions passed down by elders over millennia. Discarding them for Western approaches that seem more modern but sometimes don’t fit, or even make our predicaments worse, has been the bane of African development.

Although they may be unknown to mainstream philanthropy, Nigerians, like all Africans, have longstanding traditions of social enterprise, business ethics and philanthropy. We should document and practise them, mixing their best elements to adapt models such as foundations to African conditions and priorities. The West does not have all the answers to the world’s problems, and some of the most intriguing solutions are coming right from Africa.

2 Adapt appropriate business practices to the special conditions of social capital markets.

If you represent a corporation considering or already operating a social responsibility and investment programme, or even if you are a philanthropist who wants to use market tools to support NGOs, remember that most successful investors in business stay in for the long haul; they know their risk tolerance and they maintain diversified portfolios.

The same should be true for philanthropists and social investors. Because of the fear that a promising but unproven idea or leader might not work in the short term, some philanthropists and social investors avoid supporting new programmes and organizations.

It is difficult to predict the success of any organization. However, sometimes the least proven leaders or a new untested idea can have the greatest potential long-term social payoff by expanding justice and advancing social consciousness.
3 Develop appropriate measures of social impact for your business or philanthropy.

Social capitalism models must be willing to let go of measures of success that don’t work well where the market has obviously failed to provide social goods that society needs − such as access to basic healthcare, safe housing, clean air and water, and protection from violence − recognizing that these inequalities, which often play out across ethnic, racial, gender, religious or class lines, can be the most difficult to fix. Patient, early capital and a high-risk, high-reward investment posture are often required; a quick fix with quantifiable short-term results may not be possible.

4 If you have the financial means, create a well-managed, professionally run philanthropic or social investment organization or programme.

It is not only the funding that you can provide, but also the example you set, of Nigerians supporting Nigerian social enterprise and philanthropy, that will help create a social capitalism ethic focused on giving back for social change. As a wealthy foundation, you are also in a better position to speak out for public policies that benefit the poor and vulnerable. Hold yourself accountable, creating publicly available reports on your funding as well as the success of your grantees.

Don’t keep your money to yourself, creating a prestigious-sounding foundation that does little. Create investment strategies to grow your foundation’s capital and consider socially conscious investment strategies that reward companies with ethical practices and a positive social impact, while reflecting your foundation’s mission. These approaches will set a new model of social responsibility and build confidence in the NGO and social enterprise sector, encouraging more investment that the country so desperately needs. Harness the power of the internet to create socially responsible, innovative enterprises that promote the public good while creating new economic opportunity for yourself and others.

5 Remember you don’t have to be rich to be a philanthropist or social investor.

It is the small everyday acts of compassion and justice of everyday people that ultimately build a nation. Time, talent and courage matter as much as treasure in promoting social change. Everyone can treat their neighbour with empathy. Everyone can donate some time. We all can donate some money − no matter how little − to a worthy cause, or share ideas. In fact, do not discount the power of ‘poor people’s philanthropy’ − the small amounts of money pooled over many people over time. It is the basis of every successful social movement in history, including the American anti-slavery, African liberation, civil rights and anti-apartheid movements, to name just a few. And it can be the basis for a Nigerian social capitalism movement. The key is to be more strategic − have a vision of a better future, create a mission and strategy to achieve it, and then pool resources across the community to make the vision real. A thousand acts of kindness and collective action can and do move nations.
6 Walk the talk of social equity.

A Nigerian proverb says: ‘You can best coil a fish when it’s fresh.’

Nigeria’s social capitalism movement is just starting and now is the time to learn from others’ mistakes and create institutions that are more effective and sustainable, building our communities and even the nation.
If you represent a company, foundation, NGO or social enterprise, it is critical to have ethical and equitable organizational practices that treat men and women fairly; try to represent Nigeria’s ethnic and religious diversity in its governance as well as in its vendor base and, in some way, create opportunities for the country’s increasingly disaffected youth. Even if your organization is small or in a start-up phase with few resources for a grant or social investment programme, setting a good example of social responsibility and reporting it to the broader community can go a long way towards establishing an inclusive, tolerant and just culture of giving and society.

7 Remember that the third sector is more than an industry; it is a movement.

As third sectors advance, becoming more professionalized, they can lose their souls, becoming overly professionalized and fragmented, separated from the experience of society’s most vulnerable and divorced from their founding values and mission.

Nigerians should retain and strengthen the porous lines between philanthropy, social investment, corporate responsibility and social activism that seem to be a potentially distinctive feature of its emerging third sector. Respect for dissent, a focus on system reform and collective action will not only help strengthen the sector but also maximize its potential to promote more just and responsible capitalism that more sustainably develops the country.
8 Support the women.

As the old African saying goes: ‘Give a man a fish and he will feed himself; give a woman a fish and she will feed the nation.’

In all societies, women are the primary caretakers of vulnerable people − the sick, elderly and children. The international development literature shows that when women become financially stable and successful, they tend to reinvest that money in the immediate and long-term advancement of their children and families, as well as having high levels of community volunteerism. Whatever donations you give, or whatever social enterprise programmes or philanthropy programmes you establish, be sure to include women as it will help accelerate development.
9 Create more confidence in Nigerian NGOs.

Nigeria’s emerging social capitalism movement would be more successful if, as in other African countries, governments established regulations to encourage and monitor social benefit activities but also to protect the free speech of foundations and NGOs that speak out for social justice. There needs to be government-provided financial or other incentives (perhaps fund-matching programmes, as tax offsets may not be feasible due to the challenges of even collecting taxes in Nigeria) to encourage wealthy people to create foundations that truly serve the public, as well as rules to promote ethical practices among NGOs.
10 Remember to live all that is good about Nigeria.

Many Nigerians have, unfortunately, bought into the unfair international stereotype of the country as overrun with greedy, untrustworthy, cold-hearted capitalists who will do anything to make a quick buck. This is only one side of the equation. Nigerians are especially enterprising people. Use this enterprising spirit to recognize that each and every social problem of this country is also an opportunity waiting for some of that old-fashioned ‘can do, against all odds’ Nigerian spirit and know-how. And remember that this spirit extends to Nigerians living abroad, who annually give almost US$10 billion to family and causes in Nigeria. Recapture all that is good about Nigeria and the future can be bright. Fixate on what is wrong with Nigeria and you will unwittingly perpetuate it.

In conclusion

Building on old traditions and new practices, Nigerians can forge a more just capitalism, a uniquely Nigerian brand of social capitalism that profits the country. But believing in Nigeria’s social capitalism potential is not enough to make this movement real.

As another Nigerian proverb says: ‘The people of a community are responsible for making it better and if the community goes bad, the people are accountable too.’ Only Nigerians can make this possibility of a new path to capitalism a reality, joining the billions of voices across the planet who say that business as usual continues destruction of our countries, our communities and, ultimately, our planet.

Jacqueline Copeland-Carson is President of Copeland Carson & Associates, a global social development consultancy. Email jcc@copelandcarson.net

This article is excerpted from an address delivered on 1 May 2010 to The Platform, a community action convention, sponsored by Covenant Christian Center of Lagos, Nigeria. Go to www.copelandcarson.com for the full speech.

In a tough fiscal climate, distinctive places play a critical role in generating community pride and attracting investors.
CABE has developed a new approach to planning and urban design which crosses local authority boundaries, responding to the way people live their lives.
The guide provides a flexible new framework to inform decisions on where to invest limited resources for infrastructure, or where to focus the energies of developers and public service providers.

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More about large scale urban design

Large scale urban design is not about hoping that micro-level interventions will add up to something that works at the large scale. Nor is it about imposing inflexible solutions. It embraces the complexities and uncertainties facing people today using a design process that allows people to shape the places they want.

Large scale urban design is suited to organisations and partnerships in the public and private sector which are tasked with delivering solutions to big scale challenges, whether economic, financial or environmental.

Workshop-based process

The new approach to large scale urban design uses a workshop-based process split into three phases - prepare, design, implement.

Implement - deliver the strategy
The implementation plan sets out how the strategy will be delivered and by whom. This is based on the earlier exploration of delivery issues and its preparation may culminate in a dedicated workshop with delivery partners.

Benefits of a workshop-based approach

A workshop-based approach has many advantages over other methods of spatial planning. These include:

a shorter time scale: the design process is compressed into a number of workshops, making it cheaper and less likely to be out-of-date before it is finished

iterative working: frequent feedback loops and immediate design responses are built in

integration: all parties are engaged, and work brought together at different spatial scales in a single design process

engagement and sense of ownership: active participation in developing design solutions helps stakeholders to be positive and to own the project

conflict resolution: with all parties working together, any conflicts become evident quickly – stakeholders can discuss and resolve them immediately

consensus building: working alongside each other allows participants to develop an understanding of the wider issues

capacity building: participants become informed decision-makers who are able to develop strategic solutions in a structured and inclusive manner

increased probability of implementation: the workshops consider delivery issues from the start through a process that includes multi-disciplinary teamwork and engages politicians, funders, delivery bodies and the wider community.

Despite these advantages, challenges remain. The biggest of these is how to reconcile different views and avoid ‘consensus as compromise’, that is, reaching decisions that no one objects to but no one believes in either.

The new approach as outlined in this guide addresses difficult issues head on: this will be a tough process and not everybody is going to get everything they hoped for. It selects a handful of good, deliverable projects rather than agreeing to a long list of untested ones. And it develops strategic themes, spatial options and proposals for key projects to a level that is detailed enough for the wider community to engage with, allows for proper testing and forecasting of impacts, and provides adequate guidance for delivery partners.